Court of Appeals issues ruling in tribal case

Tuesday

Nov 25, 2008 at 12:01 AMNov 25, 2008 at 3:15 PM

A 25-page ruling from the State of Michigan Court of Appeals appears to clear the way for a civil trial pitting former Chairman Bernard Bouschor and five co-defendants against the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians in a $2.6 million lawsuit that has simmered for more than four years.

Scott Brand

A 25-page ruling from the State of Michigan Court of Appeals appears to clear the way for a civil trial pitting former Chairman Bernard Bouschor and five co-defendants against the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians in a $2.6 million lawsuit that has simmered for more than four years.

Payment, with the backing of the Sault Tribe's Board of Directors, almost immediately took action to recover those funds — claiming the pay-offs should not have been issued without board approval, setting the stage for the legal wrangling. The wheels of justice were so slow, in this particular case, that by the time it even came to the Court of Appeals Payment was no longer in power and Bouschor had been banned from tribal politics, reinstated and won a seat on the Tribal Board.

While Bouschor was initially named with seven other co-defendants, the civil claims were eventually dropped against three of the parties. Jolene Nertoli, Joseph Paczkowski and Paul Shagen reached settlements with the Sault Tribe in June 2007.

In making the settlement announcement, the board issued this statement: “We have resolved the litigation with three of their defendants because, after reviewing the evidence, we believe it is in the best interests of the Tribe. While certainly involved in this plot, the three defendants were not central to either its planning or execution. We believe we will be able to pursue the remaining defendants, for the entire unpaid balance, which was unjustly taken from the Tribe.”

Terms of the settlement were not released.

According to legal experts, Bouschor's motion of summary dismissal on grounds of governmental immunity, among others, were rejected. The court appears to have left the door open for civil action on grounds of breach of fiduciary duty, conspiracy and constructive fraud, but that will have to be proven when and if the case ever is argued in open court.

The Sault Tribe, according to informed estimates, has already sunk more than $700,000 into legal fees associated with this case.

The Tribal Board now will have the option of continuing to pursue the recovery of funds by committing more money in legal fees for this effort, or it could opt to take no action — essentially dropping the case before it heads to court.

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